Refs make the calls

I know the state tournament was last week, but I have a few random thoughts.
First, I've monitored some of the message boards. There has been some criticism for the way the Parkers Chapel girls game was officiated.
Fact is, the referees didn't call many fouls.
Did that have an impact on how the game was played?
Well, yeah. Players had to be tough with the basketball. You had to go up strong on layups and you had to grab rebounds with two hands and be prepared to fight to keep them.
It was not a game for soft players.
But, it was the same on both ends of the floor. And, for the most part, it was the same all the way through the game. The players were given the opportunity to adjust to how the game was called. Good players can do that. Not-so-good players can't.
State championships should be decided by good players. Not-so-good players shouldn't be in state title games.
It was a rough-and-tumble game. If you can't play in that type of game, the state finals is the wrong place for you to be.
That's why coaches put their teams in every possible situation during the season. You have to be prepared for anything.
This brings me to my second random thought.
El Dorado's game against Little Rock Parkview was the complete opposite. The referees called everything. Every touch. Every grab. Every foot slide.
There were so many whistles, I felt like a pretty girl walking past a construction site.
Parkview couldn't adjust. The Lady Patriots got into foul trouble and, instead of understanding the style of game they were in, they started barking at the officials.
In basketball, the officials often dictate the style of play. Officials are human beings, which mean every game is different. As a player, all you can ask is for the calls to be consistent on both ends and throughout the game.
If the game is called consistently, you cannot blame the refs if you come out on the short end.
To win a state title, a team has be to be able to adapt. You have to be able to win a finesse game and you have to get tough when it turns into football. That's what a state championship team is.
Credit the Lady Wildcats but also, my hat is off to the Lady Trojans. I haven't heard one PC player or coach complain about the refs. The Lady Trojans got tough when they had to, just couldn't get a bucket they needed.
I must say, I was proud of both of my girls teams.